


Moments Between Moments

by kelex



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-17
Updated: 2015-09-17
Packaged: 2018-04-21 05:09:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4816232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kelex/pseuds/kelex
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It felt as if someone had hit pause on the rest of the world, and there was nothing but himself and Hannibal playing in real time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Moments Between Moments

**Author's Note:**

> Timing's a bit fuzzy. Sometime after Will gets out of BSHCI but before Italy. Fluffy, but I'm okay with it.

"Will, be reasonable. You need to rest." Hannibal carefully marked the page of his book with a velvet bookmarker, then rested both hands atop the closed book so that he could turn all of his attention to his recalcitrant patient. 

"I don't want to." Will was quite aware that he sounded like a sullen child, but it was nothing more than the truth. He didn't want to go to sleep; he didn't want to wake up alone, in a house that had the fading scent of Hannibal's special coffee that could barely be discerned above the scents of six dogs.

"I know. But at some point, your body is going to force you to rest. That's more strain on your system that you can't afford. Rest now while you can, and you'll get better faster." Perhaps logic would work.

"I don't care."

Or perhaps not. "Why don't you want to sleep, then, Will?"

"Because." He reached for the coffee mug by the bed, but Hannibal gently moved it out of his reach. Bastard. "Because I don't want to wake up alone in the house and know that you _were_ here but now you're gone. Or worse." 

"Worse?" Hannibal prodded mildly, though from what Will had said, he had an idea of what worse would be in this situation. 

"Or worse, waking up and realizing this is just another one of those hallucinations that I've had. That you've never been here, that the best I can hope for is just imagining the things I want to happen instead of living outside in the real world. Or worse, I'll wake up in a gray cell and a straightjacket and find you peering at me from the other side of the bars with that worried look you have because my brain is melting out of my ears."

Hannibal took Will's wrist in his hand, fingertips caressing the delicate skin as he checked for a soundly-thumping pulse. When he found it, he brought Will's other hand over to feel it as well. "Do you feel that, Will? That is your heart, beating strongly in your chest. If this were a dream, do you think that you would feel that?"

"I don't know. Yes?"

"No, you would not." When he realized that Will wasn't convinced, Hannibal moved the coffee cup to the floor and placed his book on the nightstand. Scooting his chair closer to the edge of the bed, he took both of Will's hands and held them tightly. Squeezed until he could feel the bones grating against each other. "Nor would you be able to feel this; doesn't pain wake you from a dream?"

And it certainly was painful; Hannibal was stronger than he looked, and Will felt as if the bones were bent nearly to breaking. "You could just pinch me," he gritted out, and Hannibal released the painful grip. 

"It's not as visceral as something like this," was Hannibal's only answer. "Nor will I push you out of bed to see if you wake up falling," he added, because he could imagine that would be Will's next suggestion. 

"It doesn't… feel real," Will finally confessed, even as he rubbed his wrists. "You, me, here together." 

"Because you do not let it feel real. Your gift is empathy, yes, yet it brings you nothing but pain. Do you remember when you kissed Alana? You came directly to me afterwards, as if you could not believe you had done such a thing and needed someone you trusted to reinforce your reality. You have come to expect this, that something that is not painful cannot be trusted." He made sure Will was making eye contact with him. "You can trust me."

"Then… what do I do? How do I let it feel real?" Because he didn't want to lose this. Not this moment between the moments, when it was himself and it was Hannibal, and there was nothing else between them. Part of Will wanted to hoard these moments like a miser, because they did not happen that often. 

This is what made it feel like a dream; the games that were being played were suspended like confetti frozen in mid-air. There was no question of was he Hannibal's man or Jack's; there was no Chesapeake Ripper, no questionable dinner entrees. It felt as if someone had hit pause on the rest of the world, and there was nothing but himself and Hannibal playing in real time. 

"Will? Come back, Will." Hannibal's voice was soft, but stern, and commanded obedience.

"Huh?" He realized in an instant that Hannibal's hand was cupping the side of his face, holding his head still so that they could make direct eye contact, and the intensity of Hannibal's stare made him blink once. 

"You drifted off. I thought at first you were falling to sleep but you did not close your eyes. Where did you go?" He was concerned, certainly. Will losing focus could easily mean a deeper head injury than Hannibal had first thought, and if that was the case, they would have to leave Will's house immediately for the hospital.

"I'm fine." In this moment, it seemed perfectly natural for Will to reach up and cover Hannibal's hand with one of his own. "I was just thinking."

Hannibal remained absolutely still when Will touched him, and Will was reminded of himself approaching a stray dog; no movement meant no spooking. He wasn't sure if he had spooked Hannibal, or if Hannibal was worried about spooking him, but he didn't move his hand. 

When the warmth of Will's hand came up to rest against his own, Hannibal found he could not move. His heart was beating doubly quickly, because this was not a touch of coercion or of desperation. Will was reaching out because he wanted to. "I do worry about you."

Will laughed softly. "Yeah, and thank you for that. Somebody ought to." His laugh belied the bitterness of the words; he wasn't even aware that he _was_ bitter about it.

"I always will." Hannibal's thumb moved then, just a few millimeters, a gentle, tiny caress that nevertheless made him feel almost electrified in anticipation. 

Will's eyes fluttered closed at the soft touch. It felt almost decadent to be touched like that, like a priceless relic that was being honored. A quiet sigh slipped out of his lips, and before he could stop himself, he turned his cheek just enough to nuzzle into Hannibal's palm. Like the stroke of his cheek, the tiny kiss was small enough to go unnoticed and unremarked on if that's what Hannibal chose. 

Hannibal could barely breathe. The little kiss had taken his breath away; unexpected yet completely welcomed, he could not bring himself to believe it until he'd made himself look. Will had not moved either, and he could feel Will's breath dancing across his skin. It was enough to drive him mad, and for once, he had no silver-tongued words to respond with. 

That suited Will just fine; the fact that Hannibal hadn't yanked away, pulled back, or otherwise moved to reject him meant acceptance, and he could live with that. Hannibal's thumb moved again, this time brushing against his lips, and Will pressed a butterfly kiss against the wandering digit. 

Then, more boldly, on Hannibal's wrist, where it peeked out of the cuff of his shirt. 

Hannibal's breath escaped in a shaky hiss, and he could not have stopped it if he wanted to. Will's hand still covered Hannibal's, and Hannibal knew that if Will let go, his hand would fall. Not because he wanted to lose the contact, but because he wanted to do more. He wanted to reach for Will with both hands, kiss both his eyelids closed. He wanted to smell the freshly-washed hair--hair that Hannibal had washed with his own hands, feel it tucked under his chin. 

"Hannibal?" Will spoke softly against Hannibal's hand, because he didn't want to startle him into movement. 

"Yes?" It was about all that he could manage, and he tipped Will's chin up so they were eye to eye with one another. 

Will didn't let go of Hannibal's hand, but did let it fall from his face. Instead he held Hannibal gently by the wrist as he scooted to the furthest side of the bed, lifting the blankets from the warm side and looked back at him questioningly.

Hannibal let Will pull him over to the side of the bed, and he climbed in slowly. His shoes were the only thing he removed, and he tucked them under the edge of the bed before pulling his feet in. He sat, with his back against the headboard, and Will immediately shifted against him. He used Hannibal as a pillow, tucking his head on a strong shoulder, and his arms around a lean waist. 

Hannibal drew Will in close, burying his nose in Will's hair. His chin rested on Will's head, and he could feel the heat of Will's body pressed against his own. "Do you think you can sleep now?" Hannibal asked quietly, not trusting his voice to ask anything else. 

"Yeah. Yeah, I can sleep now." Will's hand rested on Hannibal's torso, about halfway between his heart and his stomach. "Hannibal?"

"Yes?" Hannibal was almost afraid of what was coming next, but in that moment, probably would have given or done anything that Will asked of him. 

"Promise me something."

"Of course. What is it?" So hard to keep his voice from wavering.

"Be here when I wake up." Will's eyes were closed when he asked it, and he prepared himself for anything.

"I promise," Hannibal answered softly, and was rewarded with the feeling of Will relaxing entirely against him, letting out whatever stiffness and stress that had been holding him rigid. Everything softened, and Hannibal wrapped a lock of Will's hair around one of his fingers, playing it with it to calm himself as much as Will.

Hannibal's agreement was all he had needed to hear; Will knew that Hannibal kept his promises, one way or another. When he woke up, Hannibal would be there. It might be with a knife to his neck or asleep on the pillow, but the important point was Hannibal would be there. Then they could get back to the rest of the world. 

But for now, this moment was enough for the both of them.


End file.
